Have you ever been so close with someone that you practically have your own language between the two of you? A lot of us have. My best friend and I have a lot of unspoken understandings and inside jokes that we rattle off to each other all the time. I dated a guy who was as much of a Simpsons and Futurama nerd as I was (even more so) and we were constantly quoting it them to one another. This was awesome, until the relationship was over. We started out like Romeo and Juliet, but it ended in tragedy. We'd been together for a long time and I was still accustomed to saying these things out loud, only now there was no one around who understood what I was saying or why I thought it was so funny. Sure, people will always get it if you say, "D'oh!", but not many are likely to understand when you say you'll take the crab juice. In fact, a lot of these quotes, when taken out of context, can just make you look like a jerk ("Shut up, baby, I know it.") or make people worry that your mind is no longer in mint condition.
So I guess the question is, what happens now? I'm left with all these hilarious things to say and no one around who understands a word of it. Do I seek out another obsessed fan? Or do I learn to not say everything out loud and just waste some time on internet forums with people who would get it? Or even better, do I tie down all my friends and make them watch and memorize all of the episodes so that I'm no longer alone in my geekiness? What do you do with your secret language when you don't have anyone else to speak it with anymore, when it feels like life is just one crushing defeat after another until you just wish Flanders was dead? Ah, screw this. If anyone needs me, I'll be at Moe's.
